I wonder if the manager has ever thought it might be an idea for him personally to do some work on defending set pieces.

Expected goals, expected assist or any of that complete and utter nonsense. Whenever you hear a manager coming out with them as evidence for his team playing well then you know firstly his team have lost and secondly that he is losing the plot.

How about Norwich are they outliers as well. Another category one academy who in recent years have had the likes of Aarons, Lewis, Cantwell, Godfrey. This summer they made £40 Million on two of those we wouldn't get that for our entire squad. Swansea another cat 1 academy have in the last two season made £25 million plus add ons, on James and Rodon. They also have the likes of Roberts, Cabango in the team this season. Why are these other category 1 academy Championship clubs manging to produce higher quality players than us?

You said apart from Barnsley 'the other teams at the top are full of players bought when those teams were in the Prem'. I'm just pointing out that is wrong in regards to 4 other clubs currently in the top 6 including Brentford who have never been in the Premiership.

But much less quality.

Reading have Richards (who has been signed by Bayern Munich for next season), Olise, Rinomhota, Holmes and McIntrye all in their first team squad who have come from their academy. You said apart from Barnsley the other teams at the top are full of players bought when those teams were in the Prem. I'm just pointing out that, that is incorrect as Brentford have never been in the Prem. None of Reading's squad were signed when they were in the Premiership and only a few of Swansea's players were. You can even include Norwich as well because only 2 of their current squad were signed when they were in the Premiership the rest were signed when they have been a Championship club. Who are they starting over.

Nyambe would although it is rather ironic that he can't get in our team. The other 3 at the moment would not. Reading don't have players bought when they were a Premiership team and they also have a fair few academy players in their team. Brentford have never been a Premiership team and not many of Swansea's team have come from when they were in the Premiership. Swansea have also made £26 Million by selling players who came through their academy in the last two summers. We could sell JRC, Travis, Lenihan, Buckley, Wharton and Nyambe and we still wouldn't receive close to that amount. We are producing players good enough to stand still in the middle of the Championship at best but we aren't developing players good enough to take us to the next level. It's telling that better teams be they in the Championship or Premiership never seem to show much of an interest in any of them.

Whilst we've never produced players of the ability of say a West Ham or Southampton. You go back over time as well as Jones we have produced the likes of Damien Duff, David Dunn, Jason Wilcox, James Beattie, Damien Johnson, Martin Taylor, Junior Hoilett, Martin Olsson. All of those at the very least had decent Premiership careers. But the last 10 years the academy hasn't produced a single player of the standard of any of those, look at the current players in our first team who have come through from the clubs academy it's hard to imagine any of them having even moderately successful top flight careers. I'm asking why the academy hasn't been able to produced anything better than mid table of the Championship players in the last decade. Is the recruitment wrong? Is the coaching not right? Is there too much competition locally? Is there a lack of talent locally? Are we not casting our net wide enough? The players you've named came through the academy system over a decade ago.

They came through the academy over a decade ago now. Phil Jones made his first team debut 12 years ago, Hoilett made his first team debut 12 years ago and Olsson made his debut 14 years ago.

In a 10 year period that isn't at all an impressive amount there are clubs in the Championship who over the last few years have eclipsed that amount with just one sell. There hasn't been any real quality come through for a long time, where are the next Phil Jones, Damien Duff, David Dunn, Jason Wilcox, James Beattie, Damien Johnson, Martin Taylor, Junior Hoilett, Martin Olsson? All of those came through the system and all had decent to very good careers as Premiership footballers. It's been over a decade since we have produced a single player of that standard. Why is that? You look at players like Paul Gallagher, Alan Judge both came through at Rovers and have had good career's in the second tier. Those 2 are better players than the ones we have seen come from the academy to first team in recent years. The players we are producing at the moment to me are more on the level of Marlon Broomes, Frankie Fielding, Jonathan Douglas, Jay McEveley and Neil Danns. They were all decent run of the mill Championship players but nothing more, today though that standard seems to be evidence of a brilliant academy set up.

Raya's a Championship player and it was the fact that he is a mid table goalkeeper that cost Brentford promotion last season. Hanley was over a decade ago. I forgot about O'Connell but again you are having to go back 7-8 years to when he was an academy player. Is that really acceptable for a category 1 academy? I'm not so sure that it is. Around 2008-2011 we had some quality player come through the likes Olsson, Hanley, Hoilett, Jones. Since then though for the last decade it has been very slim pickings in terms of talent coming through the academy.

I think you have failed to understand the point I was making. I'm asking why can clubs with supposedly inferior academies to ours produce players who Premiership clubs want and are prepared to pay significant money for but we have not been able to for over a decade. Look at some of the club in our division Norwich, Swansea, Middlesbrough, Bristol City, QPR, Luton, Derby, Forest, Huddersfield and Birmingham over the last few seasons they have all sold at least 1 player produced by them for a significant sum of money to a top flight club and not only does that help with balancing the books and for FFP but it also gives you money to reinvest in your team. Is it not a fair question to ask why club's with academies no better in terms of category or in many instances below ours are able to produce players who are capable of playing in the top flight yet all we seem to be able to produce is at best mid table Championship players? What is the reason? Is the recruitment wrong? Is the coaching not right? Is there too much competition locally? Are we not casting our net wide enough? I don't know the answer but would be very interested to know. I just think given we are a category 1 academy we should occasionally be producing better than mid table Championship players at best. It's been over a decade since we produced Phil Jones and he is the last genuine top flight quality player who fetched very good money that we produced.

We are producing mid table Championship players. If you could produce at player that goes for the sort of fees that I have mentioned previously, then you have a nice sum of money to put towards transfers but also balance out FFP and improve the clubs finances. I think it's a fair question why can clubs with supposedly inferior academies to ours produce players who Premiership clubs want and are prepared to pay significant money for but we have not been able to for over a decade.

We are only producing so many first team players because the bar is so low. The academy is no better now than it was 10-15 years ago but the bar has dropped so low now that players are getting into the team, 10-15 years ago none of the current crop in the first team that have come from the academy would have got near the first team. Look at other clubs in the Championship. Norwich, QPR, Barnsley, Swansea and Birmingham I have already highlighted. Nottingham Forest have made big money over the years selling the likes of Brereton, Burke, Osborne, Cash and Appiah. Middlesbrough made £15 Million from Gibson, Luton got a club record fee for James Justin who is every inch a Premier League player. Bristol City made getting on for £30 Million on Bryan, Reid and Kelly. Yet all our academy is producing is at best mid table Championship players. Being able to produce a player/players to sell for big for sums of money is a great help to club's finances, to FFP and can if used correctly can improve your team. You do have to question why one of the supposedly elite academies in the country has not produced a top player since Phil Jones over a decade ago. As I said earlier Exeter have produced two better players in the last 5 years in Ampadu and Watkins than we have managed to with cat 1 status. Look at the players in the England squad there are 3 players in it who comes through at Sheffield United when they were a 2nd/3rd tier club and they aren't category 1. Two players came through at Southampton when they were a 2nd/3rd tier club. Pope came from Charlton, Stones came through at Barnsley who aren't cat 1. Phillips came through at Leeds when they were 2nd tier and they weren't category 1. Bellingham came through at Birmingham who aren't cat 1, Watkins came through at Exeter who aren't near being cat 1. The majority of those academies I assume you would say are inferior to ours yet they have been able to produce players who have gone on to play at the top level and yet we haven't been able to so for over a decade. I think a lot of our fans hugely overrate our academy. I doubt that there are many fans of Championship clubs looking on enviously at the standard of player we are producing from our academy.

We have a Category 1 academy that is at best producing mid table second tier players. I'd have thought given we have an elite academy we would be producing players better than that. You could run an academy much cheaper and at a lower level than Cat 1 if your aim is to just produce decent Championship players.

Our academy hasn't produced a gem since Phil Jones. That is too long given the money that has been put into it and that it has Cat 1 status. You look at other clubs in our division who have cat 1 status and they are finding and producing better players and players who are making the clubs significant money. Norwich made £40 Million this summer out of Godfrey and Lewis. Then they also have Aarons and Cantwell who are both in the England Under 21's and would both fetch 8 figures. When did we last have a youngster in the England under 21's? Buckley is meant to be this great prospect yet he has never been capped at any youth level. Swansea have made £25 Million in the last 2 seasons out of two academy players in James and Rodon. You look down at Cat 2 clubs Birmingham this summer sold Bellingham for £25 Million and a few years before him they produced Nathan Redmond. QPR this season sold Eze for £20 Million, Hull got around the same for Bowen last season and you even go back a few years Barnsley produced John Stones. You even look at a club like Exeter down in League 2 in the last 5 years they have produced 2 better players in Ampadu and Watkins than we have at Rovers for over a decade. I look at the youngsters who have come through the system into our first team squad. So Nyambe, Buckley, Lenihan, JRC, Travis, Wharton and I'll include Dolan as well. I think at the most for those 7 players you are looking at £15 Million combined and none are likely to attract top flight interest. Which when you look at what other clubs in our division are selling players they have produced for really isn't good enough especially given we have Cat 1 status and a lot of money has been invested in it.

A complete and utter disgrace that shames the English game. National League Statement | Outcome of Club Charges - The Vanarama National League (thenationalleague.org.uk)

Finished it last night. A very good, very well made series. Jared Harris is fantastic as always.

England under 21's undoubtedly have some very talented players so why on earth are they being managed by Adrian Boothroyd. Talk about a dinosaur.

I saw Jephcott play twice last season for Truro and to be honest he didn't stand out one bit. But his record since going back to Plymouth firstly in League 2 and now in League 1 is very impressive.

Dembele is a quality player quick, good with the ball at his feet, he scores goals and makes them. Randall I have seen play a few times in my local non-league football a few years back and you could see then he looked a player. A mate of mine is a sponsor at Exeter and he raves about him and says that they hold him in as high regard down there as they did Watkins. He thinks he will most likely be on the move in the summer, although he did get injured the weekend so I suppose it depends how bad that is. Charles is the sort of player I like a player who moves up the levels and keeps succeeding that says a lot about his attitude as it is very easy once you drop out of the football league to never get back there. His goal scoring record at Stanley is excellent and at 25 he still hasn't reached his peak yet. Campbell is a very hard working tough tackling midfielder who can also chip in with a goal, he's a sort of old fashioned box to box midfielder. I also think looking down the football league is the way to go now as the European market is going to be tough now with Brexit and I'd rather us buy players and develop for us rather than loaning players and developing them for other clubs. Also there are some excellent players down just look at the Premiership now the likes of Maguire, Calvert-Lewin, Mings, Godfrey, Ings, Maddison, Justin, Watkins, Vardy, Wilson, Alli, Holgate, Adams and Creswell all started out at League 1 or below.

Of the out of contract players the only one's I'd be giving new deals to would be Nyambe, Rothwell and JRC. I personally don't think that Nyambe will sign but I'm hopeful that the other 2 will if offered decent terms and I think we all know that Armstrong is not going to be here next season. Bringing in I think we need 2 centre backs, a right back, a left back, 2 central midfielders, 2 wide men, a number 10 and 2 strikers. For the centre backs I'd like two experienced defenders at this come in. I see someone like Tim Ream at Fulham is out of contract in the summer he's a good defender who has plenty of experience at this level. Kipre is another one I hope we take another look at as I can't see him having a future with WBA and his wages will drop after they get relegated. At right back to replace Nyambe (as I see JRC more as a right winger than right back), I'd be looking at either Dabo at Coventry or Olosunde at Rotherham. At left back whoever we sign will be back up to Pickering, so I'd just look for a free transfer with a bit of experience for example I see someone like Lee Wallace is out of contract at QPR at the end of the season. In central midfield a player I like and would take a look at is Dewsbury-Hall at Leicester he'll be nearly 23 at the start of next season so may well be ready to make a permanent move away from Leicester if not though then we should be able to do a loan deal. Also if Sheffield Wednesday go down then I'd be making a bid for Barry Bannan I know he signed a new contract earlier this year but I wouldn't be at all suprised if there was a clause in it if they went down as he is far to good for League 1. Should Wednesday stay up then I'd look at someone like Allan Campbell at Mothwell. I'd be play 4-2-3-1 so we will need a number 10 to replace Dack and I'd go for Emiliano Marcondes at Brentford a good player but he has never quite quite suited Brentford's style but I think in the right system he would be a real player at this level and he can also play deeper. We need to sign some proper winger's the 2 I'd be going for are Demeble from Peterbourgh who is a very good player can also play in other attacking role and I believe is available on a free. The other one who I would be after is Joel Randall at Exeter who could well be the next Watkins to come through down there. The two strikers that I'd be going for would be Jordan Rhodes, he's a quality finisher who if you create chances for him will score goals. The other striker I'd take a look at would be Charles from Stanley, if we really are looking to replicate the Brentford model then he suits it perfectly. That would leave us with the following squad for the new season. GKs: Kaminski, Pears RB: Dabo/Olosunde, Pike CB: Lenihan, Ream, Kipre, Carter, Wharton (although I dobut we will see much of him before Xmas) LB: Pickering, Wallace CM's: Travis, Dewsbury-Hall, Davenport, Buckey, Bannan/Campbell No10: Rothwell, Marcondes Wide: JRC, Dolan, Brereton, Dembele, Randall ST: Rhodes, Gallagher, Charles It's a squad that I think is very attainable with the wages we are getting off the bill and the fee that we will get for Armstrong. I'll be honest I'm not expecting much from next season but I think that is a squad that would be very competitive and with the potential to grow into a promotion winning team.

What a defensive display from Cardiff to beat Swansea. Flint and Morrison in the centre of defence were absolutely sensational.

He won't be on £40K a week after this season he will be getting nothing and Rhodes is a pretty level headed lad he knows he won't get this sort of money in todays world.

On a free transfer I'd take Rhodes every day of the week, he's a goal scorer and with Dack out and Armstrong most likely off we are going to need one of them. Create the chances for him that we create for Armstrong and he would score a hatful. Our squad is going to most likely have a lot of new players next season and that will cost money, with Rhodes you can get a proven Championship striker for free and spend your transfer budget on other areas. Another striker I'd hope that we are keeping an eye on if Charles at Accrington. If Mowbray is serious about replicating the Brentford model then a player like Charles is exactly the sort of player we should be looking at.